Pulis: Fate is in our hands

Stoke manager Tony Pulis maintained his side’s destiny was in their own hands despite the Potters dropping into the bottom three of the Barclays Premier League following a 3-1 defeat at Everton.

Pulis was unhappy with his side’s lack of belief before the interval but believed their spirit gave them a fighting chance after the break.

Tony Pulis

He said: “It was disappointing, we didn’t throw any punches until the second half, we did not take the game to them and looked laboured, that’s the nicest way to put it.”

He added: “But after the break we showed a lot more spirit, the goal helped and we made them nervous.”

Brazilian striker Jo and defender Joleon Lescott had given the Toffees a comfortable half-time lead, but after Ryan Shawcross had pulled one back after the break, Stoke battled hard for a point before Marouane Fellaini hit the all-important third in injury-time.

“We had chances and could have scored again,” Pulis added. “But we cannot wait until we are 2-0 down every game before we start to fight back.

“We know we are now in the bottom three, but survival is in our own hands.

“If we can win an away game somewhere, it will take a lot of pressure off everyone. I believe we have to win one away from home minimum.”

He added: “We have shown we have spirit. But winning games now is vital, we have four away and five at home left.

“We must win away, we are pretty decent when it comes to home games, but that will not be enough now, we cannot go through a season without an away win and expect to stay up.”